Hindu : Make Art Jump To Life

Students of animation have to master digital compositing, lighting, lip sync and much more.

Photo: AP

Watching illustrated characters get life, walk, run, talk, act like all of us is a fascinating sight to behold.

Movies of the likes of Finding Nemo, Bug’s Life and Toy Story had our hearts go out for those adorable moving figures. Behind these remarkably enticing works of art lies a dynamic, extremely creative field called animation.

If you have the imagination, the drive to make art jump to life, the field has tremendous potential. Of course, only if you are a professional trained in the intricacies of the ever-evolving subject.

For students looking out for good training schools, there are many already in the city, State and beyond. The latest to join the animation bandwagon is Takshaa, a school offering certificate courses at the introductory, intermediate and advanced levels. Located on the outskirts of Bangalore, on Whitefield Road, Takshaa is run by a big gathering of professional animators, modellers, lighters and visual effects artists.

In the beginner’s how-to course, students are taught the basics of Computer Graphics and Animation. The course covers the first steps of the entire animation spectrum. Students are introduced to modelling (polygon, nurbs and subdivision), basics of light & shade and basic rigging. Students will have to complete a 10-second project using the skills learnt under this course.

The overall objective of the Animation curriculum is to ensure that students can master basic principles in acting, weight timing, lip sync etc. The course covers different levels of animation study across Animation Aesthetics and Animation Physics.

The programme on `Game Asset Creation’ is designed to help students create production-ready game assets. This includes environments, characters and creatures, besides hard surface modelling.The programme on Light and Shade is about exposing students to the magic of lighting. At the end of the course, students would know how different is lighting for animation from lighting for real life; and the tools required to recreate light and shade on the computer.

Visual Effects is a course that offers students an overview of rotoscoping and digital paint effect procedures for film and television production. Topics included are wire removal, articulated mattes, plate restoration, plate extension and paint animation. In addition to these, students will have to undergo a mandatory foundation course in Art. Here, they are exposed to Form, Perspective, Anatomy, Composition and Colour.

All the courses are of three-month duration. Each course in Animation, Modelling, Game Asset Creation, Light and Shade and Visual Effects will be conducted thrice a week. This will include a three-hour session and two, two-hour assisted classes. Art courses are conducted once a week. Students could coordinate their applications by mail through